McCorkle was born in Berkeley, California. She studied modern languages at the University of California, Berkeley. McCorkle began singing professionally after hearing recordings of Billie Holiday in Paris in the late 1960s. She nearly became an interpreter at the European Commission in Brussels, but moved instead to London in 1972 to pursue a career in singing. While in the UK, she made two albums which, although well received, enjoyed only limited circulation.
In the late 1970s, McCorkle returned to the United States and settled in New York City, where a five-month engagement at the Cookery in Greenwich Village brought her to wider public attention and elicited rave reviews from critics.
During the 1980s, McCorkle continued to record; her maturing style and the darkening timbre of her voice greatly enhanced her performances. In the early 1990s, two of the albums McCorkle made for Concord Records, No More Blues and Sábia, were enormously successful and made her name known to the wider world. She was recorded by the Smithsonian Institution which at the time made her the youngest singer ever to have been included in its popular music series. McCorkle played Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher and Alice Tully Halls five times and Carnegie Hall three times, and was featured soloist with Skitch Henderson and the 80-piece New York Pops in a concert of Brazilian music.
Thanks to her linguistic skills, McCorkle translated lyrics of Brazilian, French, and Italian songs, notably those for her Brazilian album Sabia. McCorkle also had several short stories published and, in 1991, began work on her first novel. She published fiction in Mademoiselle, Cosmopolitan Magazine, and non-fiction in the New York Times Magazine and in American Heritage, including lengthy articles on Ethel Waters, Bessie Smith, Irving Berlin and Mae West.
McCorkle suffered for many years from depression and cancer, and took her own life at age 55 by leaping off the balcony of her highrise Manhattan apartment. She was alone in her home at the time. The police immediately entered her home after identifying her body and found no foul play. Suicide was ruled the cause of death.
Where Or When
Susannah McCorkle Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We looked at each other in the same way then
But I can't remember where or when
The clothes you're wearing are the clothes you wore
The smile you are smiling you were smiling then
But I can't remember where or when
Seem to be happening again
And so it seems that we have met before
And laughed before, and loved before
But who knows where or when
The lyrics of Susannah McCorkle's song "Where or When" are full of nostalgia and longing for a past love that is difficult to pinpoint. The singer reminisces about a time when she met this person before, but she cannot remember where or when. The repeated phrases, "we looked at each other in the same way then" and "the clothes you're wearing are the clothes you wore," emphasize the sense of déjà vu and the idea that the past is repeating itself.
The lyrics also touch on the idea that some things happen for the first time, but they seem like they are happening again. This creates a feeling of confusion and uncertainty about whether the past is truly repeating itself, or if it is just a similar experience. The singer longs to remember the specifics of the past encounter, but ultimately concludes that it doesn't really matter. It is enough to know that they have met, laughed, and loved before, whether or not they can remember when or where it happened.
Overall, "Where or When" is a nostalgic and wistful song that captures the bittersweet feeling of remembering a past love that has been lost to time. It speaks to the idea that some things are hard to forget, and that the past will always hold a special place in our hearts.
Line by Line Meaning
It seems we stood and talked like this before
I have a sense of familiarity as if this conversation has happened before
We looked at each other in the same way then
Our gaze had a familiar quality as if we’ve met before and felt the same connection
But I can't remember where or when
However, the actual place and time of our previous meeting remain elusive to me
The clothes you're wearing are the clothes you wore
You are dressed similarly to how you were the last time we met
The smile you are smiling you were smiling then
Your smile feels like a familiar memory to me
But I can't remember where or when
Again, the precise moment of our past encounter is hazy
Some things that happened for the first time
New experiences that had their beginning once before
Seem to be happening again
Have a resemblance to the past and feel like they're recurring
And so it seems that we have met before
All signs point to us having encountered one another previously
And laughed before, and loved before
We likely shared experiences of joy and love before
But who knows where or when
Despite all the similarities and memories, we can't pinpoint the exact time and place of our previous meeting
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind